A person’s birth order can and does affect their personality. It can also affect a person’s attitude towards their environment and situations. Birth order can also affect a person’s relationships, his or her own children and career direction or choice. Keep in mind, the birth order theory does not explain all aspects of a person’s behavior, but it does provide some insight as to why people act and/or behave the way they do. In today’s age, many researchers have or are, discounting the birth order theory. “But all that's changing. At research centers in the U.S., Canada, Europe and elsewhere, investigators are launching a wealth of new studies into the sibling dynamic, looking at ways brothers and sisters steer one another into--or away from--risky behavior; how they form a protective buffer against family upheaval; how they educate one another about the opposite sex; how all siblings compete for family recognition and come to terms--or blows--over such impossibly charged issues as parental favoritism” (Kluger, Carson, Cole, Steptoe, 2006). The birth order has four different groupings and these are the only child, the youngest child, the middle child and the oldest child. Each of these groups exhibits their own pros and cons. Children that are first born, are shown and believed to strive for high achievements. Some typical traits of first-born children are dominance, confidence, motivation, leadership, maturity and self-discipline. In many instances, the first-born child is or becomes the most successful in the family and many choose careers that involve leadership. An indication as to why this may be is because with first-born children, the parents tend to strive to be the very best parents they can be with this child. This group of children will receive more encouragement and attention than children born later. Research shows that first-borns tend to be smarter and more productive than younger siblings in their family are